Taylor’s “The Show” A Sustainable Fashion Showcase

Recently I was privileged to attend the Taylor's “The Show” A Sustainable Fashion Showcase themed “Love, Earth”. It was a one-day fashion showcase curated by The Design School at Taylor’s University which revealed a contemporary ready-to-wear collection that featured nearly 60 garments designed by 24 Fashion Design Technology programme students, across three semesters. 

Taylor’s “The Show” A Sustainable Fashion Showcase

 

We all know that sustainability is the way forward, I am glad that Taylor’s University, together with Kuala Lumpur Fashion Week (KLFW), Life Line Clothing Malaysia Sdn Bhd (LLCM), FASHINFIDELITY, and fashion designer Hatta Dolmat, collaborated on this initiative to showcase the production of sustainable garments in an effort to advocate ethical fashion in Malaysia.

Taylor’s “The Show” A Sustainable Fashion Showcase

Focusing on sustainability, the showcase was divided into three segments that officially unveiled the Experimental Art-to-Wear (ATW) collection from recycled denim and clothing trims, the Zero Waste Fashion collection using Taylor’s Innovative Pattern Drafting Technique that utilises every part of the textile, and the Fashion Revolution collection to support United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by repurposing and reusing textiles from waste materials.

Programme Director of Taylor’s Bachelor of Fashion Design Technology, Maria Sandra Wijaya, sharing her thoughts on the importance of educating students and the public on sustainable fashion and technological knowledge to ensure a better future by caring for the environment during the media Q&A session

Programme Director of Taylor’s Bachelor of Fashion Design Technology (Honours) (FDT), Maria Sandra Wijaya, said The Show’s theme was apt, due to the fact that the fashion industry is identified as the second-largest polluter in the world. “The fast fashion culture is a lucrative business, and we understand the importance of educating our students on sustainable fashion and technological knowledge. The creative fashion industry and fashion designers have the power to change current trends to ensure a better future by caring for the environment,” she said.

Taylor’s “The Show” A Sustainable Fashion Showcase

For all three segments of The Show, LLCM provided over 150kg worth of recycled fabric and denim to be used by the students. In the run up to The Show, students were given the opportunity to collaborate with industry players such as environmental engineer Najah Onn and sustainable local designer Hatta Dolmat, over 14 weeks. These industry mentors played the role of students’ advisors in conceptualising, developing, creating, and styling The Show’s garment collections.

Mayamode, Malaysia’s first co-working fashion studio - an innovative and creative space for established fashion designers, fashion entrepreneurs, freelancers, and emerging fashion designers in Southeast Asia to collaborate and bring their projects to life

The Show was staged at Mayamode, Malaysia’s first co-working fashion studio, the fashion show was organised by the FDT students who were also working alongside Andrew Tan, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of KLFW and fellow Co-Director of the programme.

(L-R) Hatta Dolmat, Local Sustainable Fashion Designer (second from left) speaking to Andrew Tan, Founder of Kuala Lumpur Fashion Week & Programme Co-Director of Taylor's Bachelor of Fashion Design Technology, and Melinda Looi, Local Fashion Designer (second from right) before The Show

“We’re pleased with the students’ work for their very first runway show, demonstrating their capabilities in being creative as well as sustainable in their products. They have certainly benefitted from the top-notch facilities at Mayamode – from the latest garment-making machines, industrial-grade sewing machines for all types of materials, pattern plotters, drafting facilities, and to waste-reducing pattern digitisers using the Lectra technology – that would allow them to calculate their fabric consumption and use technology to reduce wastage,” he said. 

The Show and Tell Press Segment

Prior to the fashion showcase, I also attended the Show and Tell Press Segment that was conducted to demonstrate how a sustainable meter was used to quantify the sustainability of all garments designed for the fashion showcase through three sustainable criteria – materials & composition, innovation & circularity, and heritage & culture.

Steffi from Year 1, Semester 3, demonstrating how a sustainable meter was used to quantify the sustainability of all her garments under her Fashion Revolution collection titled Broken into Pieces through three sustainable criteria – materials & composition, innovation & circularity, and heritage & culture

Najah Onn, Environmental Engineer and Sustainability Specialist during her Sustainable Meter briefing document sharing session with the members of the media

"Designers have a big role to play in reversing the damaging effects of today’s linear fashion supply chain on people and the planet. Longevity, with the end in mind after optimal utilisation, has to be at the forefront of any design. Thinking about how a fashion or textile product can morph into other products also keeps clothing in circulation longer. Using innovative materials can help reduce pressure on our Earth's resources, but also assists in biodegradability and end-of-life reincarnation," said Najah Onn, Environmental Engineer and Sustainability Specialist. Additionally, Hatta Dolmat shared that Taylor’s FDT students were a pleasure to mentor and work with. 

Hatta Dolmat, Local Sustainable Fashion Designer sharing his thoughts on the sustainable fashion industry in Malaysia and his advisory opportunity given to mentor Taylor’s Bachelor of Fashion Design Technology (Honours) programme students during his Innovation Session

 “They are inspired young minds that are open to learning more about sustainable and ethical fashion, and focused on addressing environmental and social issues by supporting the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) through their designed garments. I look forward to more meaningful collaborations with Taylor’s University as the opportunity given to share my industry experience with these up-and-coming student designers were significant, especially knowing they will lead the industry to greater success,” added Hatta.

Taylor’s “The Show” A Sustainable Fashion Showcase

Within an atmosphere of creativity and collaboration, and in line with Taylor’s carefully curated Taylor’sphere ecosystem, the institution encourages interdisciplinary collaboration that aims to equip students with academic knowledge, practical wisdom, and the ability to create and innovate. For The Show, Interior Architecture students collaborated with the FDT students to refurbish Taylor’s Micro House by using recycled raw materials such as t-shirts and recycled poly-al provided by LLCM to create art and texture braided pieces.

(L-R) Maria Sandra Wijaya, Programme Director of Taylor’s Bachelor of Fashion Design Technology, Dr Pouline Koh Chai Lin, Head of School for The Design School, Professor Dr Pradeep Nair, Deputy Vice Chancellor and Chief Academic Officer, Taylor’s University, Y.M. Tengku Dato Dr Hishammuddin Zaizi bin Y.A.M Tengku Azman Shah Alhaj, Dr Petra Ponevács-Pana, Ambassador of Hungary in Malaysia, Professor Dr David Asirvatham, Executive Dean at Taylor’s University Faculty of Innovation & Technology along with two other guests during a group photoshoot at The Show

“To this end, Taylor’s University continues to push the envelope in pedagogy to address the needs of the current market and help the nation’s social and economic development. Our Fashion Design Technology programme is an example of how we’re incorporating technology-enabled learning and an impact-based approach in our degrees. Taking steps to future-proof graduates in a demanding labour landscape, The Show’s main goal is to inculcate students with the right skills and experience to develop the agility and creativity to be able to tackle complex problems,” said Professor Dr Pradeep Nair, Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Chief Academic Officer, Taylor’s University.

Taylor’s “The Show” A Sustainable Fashion Showcase

Well, members of the public can now shop Taylor’s first-ever fashion label, MAYAMODE, which features student designer pieces via an online-based retail platform that also has its first retail pop-up at Mayamode, Taylor's University Lakeside Campus.

Taylor’s first-ever fashion label, MAYAMODE, was launched at The Show which features student designer pieces via an online-based retail platform that also has its first retail pop-up at Mayamode, Taylor's University Lakeside Campus

Overall, The Show was a successful fashion show and a platform for Taylor’s Fashion Design Technology programme students, across three semesters to showcase their sustainability garments to the world. There are many remarkable creations by the students, and I hope this practical initiative will go on for the next semester or year. 

Mayamode is an innovative and creative space that operates on a membership basis for established fashion designers, fashion entrepreneurs, freelancers, and emerging fashion designers in Southeast Asia.

For more information and updates about Taylor’s University’s Fashion Design Technology programme, please visit their Website